How to Choose an Alexandria Roofing Contractor

Monday, August 27th, 2012

Your home is your most important investment, and your roof is one of the most important parts of your home. Do you want to entrust it with an Alexandria roofing company that doesn’t know what they are doing? One of the hardest parts of any home improvement or maintenance project is simply choosing a contractor you can trust who won’t try to rip you off or do a subpar job. Fortunately, things like the internet have made choosing a roofing contractor easier than ever – provided you know what you’re looking for! Here is a list of the most important things to consider when choosing a roofing contractor:

Online Reviews

The first place you should start is looking at online reviews. For instance, do a quick search on Google for something like “cedar shake roof repair falls church va.”Make a list of the companies that come up on the first page, then go to websites like the Better Business Bureau to find out how customers generally rate the roofing contractors. Doing this is a good way to collect some first impressions about different roof repair companies in your area before you even pick up the phone.

Note: not all online review sites will be completely reliable. Occasionally a single customer will have a bad experience that is completely out of line for a certain company, but that will be the only review. While you are checking online reviews, ask your neighbors if they have ever hired a roofing contractor and how they would rate their experience. Remember: someone who’s happy with their service will tell their neighbors– someone who’s upset will tell the whole world.

Price

Before you sign up for roofing service, get a number of quotes from companies that actually come to your house and assess your situation to determine the extent of service you need – don’t trust quotes given over the phone! Of course, like online reviews, price should not be the only way you compare different roofing contractors. In fact, price shopping when choosing a roof repair company is even trickier – in general, you definitely do not want to choose the company offering the lowest price! With home services companies, especially roof repair, you get what you pay for. That doesn’t mean you have to choose the most expensive contractor, but if one company offers a significantly lower price for services, it could be a sign that their services are less than perfect.

License and Insurance

Roofing is an inherently dangerous job, and a roofer’s insurance is designed to protect you as much as the contractor! Make sure the company you are looking at is licensed and insured – this is one of the best ways to be sure it is reliable. If an uninsured roofer gets injured on your property, you could be held accountable for it!

By the same token, make sure the roofing company is large enough to handle your needs, but small enough to be able to pay special attention to you. A huge, 100+ employee company may have the scale to complete your project quickly, but there’s a risk you will get lost in the shuffle of all of their other customers. On the other hand, a company that’s too small may not have the manpower or financial resources to make sure your job is handled properly – and trust us, you don’t want to wait until your roof has been stripped off to realize the contractor has run out of money!

If you are looking for a roofing contractors in Northern Virginia, give us a call 703-455-9418 and experience the R.M. Banning Roofing difference.